10/04/2024
It’s been a week since Hurricane Helen came through the High Country, so we just wanted to provide an update on Blowing Rock and our properties. I was in Blowing Rock as the storm passed through on Friday and stayed in the area through Wednesday to help with the recovery efforts in the smallest communities that were hit the hardest. The kindness and community I have seen this week is unparalleled, neighbors and volunteers doing whatever they can to help those in need. Organizations like Wine To Water and Build for Good / The Speckled Trout Outfitters have been working nonstop to reach those in need and continue to do so.
We were personally blessed to have escaped the major damage from Hurricane Helene in Blowing Rock. Both Oak Haven and Brook Haven lost power for only a couple of hours on Friday, and regained WiFi access on Monday. As a result, we have been able to assist folks displaced from their homes as well as citizens bringing in supplies. There were trees down around Moss Haven and throughout the neighborhood but fortunately none impacting the cabin, with only a few homes (in a neighborhood of 30) experiencing minimal direct impact and we expect to have power back by the end of the weekend.
Most businesses in Downtown Blowing Rock are open currently and many have been all week, with others opening by the day. Special shoutout to the employees of Blowing Rock Brewing Co. for doing what they could to feed folks in town during the aftermath of the storm.
The main roads (421, 321, 221, 105) to access our properties are clear (with the exception of the Parkway), and area attractions that weren't badly impacted are eager to reopen when possible.
The outpouring of support has been incredible. Me and a few other Dad’s from my kids’ school in Apex have raised nearly $10,000 on GoFundMe (link below) via direct donations from the community. We have purchased generators, cooking stoves, chainsaws, flashlights, gas and other essential goods and plan to deliver these goods on Saturday morning to the communities in/around Marshall, NC and Newland, NC. I delivered supplies to the communities around Newland/Plumtree on Tuesday and can confirm that those communities and many other rural and hard to reach communities will continue to need your support more than ever.
Many have asked how they can help. Here are a few orgs that I have seen directly supporting the community with my own eyes.
Wine to Water - https://give.wtw.org/give/624505/ #!/donation/checkout?c_src=web
Build for Good Foundation - Venmo: Build4Good
https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-our-hurricane-helene-relief-efforts-in-western-nc?attribution_id=sl:9ad3d890-2f51-47e0-9ea6-28f330d982c5&utm_campaign=man_ss_icons&utm_content=amp8_c&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link
GoFundMe we created to purchase and deliver supplies
https://www.gofundme.com/f/urgent-supply-convoy-this-weekend-for-western-nc?utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp8_t3&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=sms
Should you visit Blowing Rock?
It may be a sensitive topic, but with tourism being the lifeblood of this region the businesses in Blowing Rock and nearby Boone agree that we need folks like you to start coming back in the coming weeks more than ever. Downtown Blowing Rock is operational and while in the near term there continues to be utility work and staging in progress on the outskirts of the town (not on Main St), the tourism revenue in the coming weeks and months will be absolutely critical to the survival of the local small businesses that you know and love.
Every booking at our properties supports locals both directly - through the work of cleaning crews and maintaining the property - as well as indirectly through guests spending money at local stores and restaurants.
If you love this area and are not in a position to have boots on the ground right now you can help by COMING BACK!! Maybe not today or tomorrow, but if you’re willing to bring some flexibility and patience on an upcoming trip in a couple of weeks or months from now to the High Country you will be helping the local economy stay afloat.
Feel free to reach out to me directly if you have specific questions or reservations about visiting the area, or if you’d like help getting connected with local orgs that are helping those most in need.
Justin
